Aceldama

XXIII. Ah ! under his protection, in his love, With my abasements emulating his, We surely should attain to That which Is, And lose ourselves, together, far above The highest heaven, in one sweet lover’s kiss, So sweet, so strong That with it all my soul should unto him belong. XXIV. An ecstasy to which no life responds, Is the enormous secret I have learned : When self-denial’s furnace-flame has burned Through love, and all the agonizing bonds That hold the soul within its shell are turned To water weak ; Then may desires obtain the cypress crown they seek. 2 3